Electronic commerce is primarily done in three fashions. The first uses specialized keyboards (e.g. ATMs), the second uses computers (usually with an Internet connection) and the third is with a telephone keypad.
Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs) are a wonderful convenience for bank customers. Unfortunately they are also a significant convenience for street criminals. Many street criminals stake out ATM locations. They will then wait until the cash machine is visited by a single vulnerable customer. They will then confront the customer with a weapon or threat and demand that the customer withdraw the maximum amount of cash available.
In many other instances, home invasion burglars and rapists have taken cash cards and used intimidation and violence to extract the PIN number from the customer.
Through other means criminals, often not violent, will come across someone""s PIN number and a cash or credit card. This is many times done simply because the customer had the PIN number written in an insufficiently covert means in a wallet or a purse.
What is needed is a means to go beyond the PIN number to ensure that only the appropriate individual is in fact using the ATM. Colbert (U.S. Pat. No. 5,594,806) teaches a computer camera analysis of the knuckles of the customer as a type of simplified fingerprint scheme. This would still not protect the customer who is being forced to make a cash withdrawal under duress. What is needed is a system that would refuse to cooperate with a cash withdrawal when the appropriate customer is under extreme duress and/or the ATM operator is in fact not the appropriate customer.
Similarly there is a need to better identify a customer transacting business over the Internet. Passwords and credit card numbers are often stolen and compromised. Also, it is difficult for customers to remember all of the passwords which are required for their various Internet vendors. Finally, better security is needed for telephone based E-commerce.